Wrench having axially cammed collet



J 1952 w. B. STRAYER WRENCH HAVING AXIALLY CAMMED COLLET Filed March 26. 1949 INVENTOR.

WILLIAM B. STRAYER BY .5 2 Z ATTORNEY Patented June 3, 1952 omm-:1) STATES PATENT OFFICE Y WRENCH HAVING AXIALLY CAMMED COLLET William B. Strayer, Miamisburg, Ohio 1 Application March 26, 1949, Serial No. 83,599

1 Claim. (01. 81-112) This invention relates to whet wrenches, and has for one of its objects to provide a wrench of this type which is adapted for use in locations which are accessible only from certain positions and directions, and through restricted spaces.

Another object of the invention is to provide a wrench which in. its normal operation will become securely clamped upon a nut with aretaining force which will securethe wrench to the'nut in a self-sustaining relation in any angularposition of the wrench.

Another object of the invention is to provide a wrench of this class in which the self-sustaining clamping action between the wrench and the clamp will be exerted in either direction of rotation of the wrench.

Other objects of the invention relate to structural features resulting in a simple sturdy product of few and simple parts, easily produced and assembled.

A structure embodying the features of this invention comprises generally a tapered socket or chuck with resilient jaws longitudinally movable within a tapered bore of a cylindrical head or holder. Cooperating members on the inner ends of the socket or chuck member and the inner end of the holder cooperate to control the longitudinal movement of the chuck or socket in either direction of rotation of the wrench.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Fi 1 is a view looking into the nut receiving end of the wrench.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken upon line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an end view of the lever receiving end of the device, and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view in developed form of cooperating actuating surfaces suitable for applying clamping force to the wrench.

Referring now to the drawings, a tubular memher 5 is adapted to receive an expansible wrench law 6. The jaw 6 is solid at its inner end I but is hollow at its outer end, which is divided into four equal resilient sections 8, which are capable of contraction and expansion by the longitudinal movement of the member 6, in the tubular mem her 5. For this purpose, the tubular member 5 is provided, at the end adjacent the wrench jaw 5, with an inwardly extending tapered shoulder 9, which cooperates with tapered faces H], on the jaw sections 8, to produce the desired contraction of the sections.

Rotatably located in the opposite end of-tlie tubular member 5, adjacent the end I of the 2 wrench jaw, is a cylindrical block I2,'provided with a wrench receiving socket I3opening to ward the outer end-of the member 5 to receive the end of a wrench extension shank of a form familiar to mechanics. A circumferential 'groove l4, in the block l-2,. is adapted to receive the end Of a set screw 15, extending through the wall of the'tubularmember 5, to secure the block I2 against longitudinal movement;

The adjacent endsof the'wrench member 6 and the cylinder-block l2 are each provided with a pair of raised cammed surfaces l 6, the two surfaces on each element being spaced degrees apart. When assembled, the cam surfaces IS on one member will project into the space between the cam surfaces of the other member as shown more clearly in Fig. 4.

It will be obvious from this construction that any relative rotation of the members 6 and I2 will cause the faces of adjacent cams Hi to ride upwardly upon each other, thus applying a thrust to the member 6, which will cause it to move longitudinally of the cylinder 5, and against the tapered shoulder 9, to contract the jaws or sections 8 against the face of a nut and become attached thereto.

The nut engaging portion of the wrench jaw 1 is provided with twelve nut engaging faces I8, thereby adapting it to nuts of any standard configuration, and also to engaging the body of a stud bolt with sufficient force to apply the necessary turning force for driving it in either direction.

The gripping pressure of the jaw 1 upon a nut or bolt in response to the contracting forces produced by the action of the cam surfaces is sufficient to engage the jaw upon the nut with a locking force which will support the wrench upon a nut which is vertically above the wrench, or at any angle above the horizontal with respect to the wrench. The frictional force exerted between the engaging faces of the cam surfaces I6 upon the application of a turning force to the wrench, coupled with the wedging force between the tapered shoulder 9 and the tapered faces on the jaw sections, is sufficient to retain the surfaces against backing off under the slight pressure resulting from reverse movement of the ratcheting mechanism of a wrench.

A wrench made in accordance with this invention will find a wide field of usefulness in automobile body work where the nuts and bolts may be in locations or at angles making them very difiicult of access and manipulation with present known types of wrenches. It is especially adaptable and convenient where heretofore the rethe art that other forms of force applying means for producin the longitudinal movement of the member I in either direction of rotation of the wrench may be used without departing from this invention. 7 7

The jaws 8 of the portion 1 may be made to separate a sufiicient distance to accommodate a plurality of sizes of nuts, and a set of four or five ments of an ordinary car body.

Although I have shown and described vention with respect to certain details of construction, it is to be understood that I do not wish to be unduly limited thereto, many modifications being possible without departing from the spirit orscope of my invention.

I claim:

In a device of the class described, a holder provided with a longitudinally extending tapered opening, a tapered nut-engaging socket positioned in the opening and provided with resilient jaws contractible, by relative longitudinal movement of the socket and the tapered opening, a Wrenchmy inwrenches will be suflicient to meet most re'quirereceiving member mounted in the opposite end of the holder for rotation about the longitudinal axis of the holder, means connectin said holder and said wrench-receiving member to prevent axial movement of said wrench-receiving member during its rotation, and a pair of spaced cams projecting from each confronting end of the nutengaging socket and thewrench-receiving member, said spaced, cams being engageable upon rotation of the wrench-receiving member in either direction in order to impart a longitudinal movement to the nut-engaging socket.

WILLIAM B. STRAYER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

